


Panic Plus Real Dads

by AspiringAuthor29



Category: MacGyver (TV 2016)
Genre: (sorta) - Freeform, Gen, Jack gives him one, Jack is Mac's real dad, Jack is so done with James MacGyver's crap, Jack loves his boy, James MacGyver's A+ parenting, Mac has anxiety, Mac needs a hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-07
Updated: 2020-11-07
Packaged: 2021-03-09 02:21:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,786
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27427111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AspiringAuthor29/pseuds/AspiringAuthor29
Summary: Mac has always had panic attacks and Jack has always known how to handle them, but when the elder MacGyver goes on an op with them, chaos will unfold.
Relationships: Angus MacGyver & James MacGyver (MacGyver TV 2016), Jack Dalton & Angus MacGyver (MacGyver TV 2016)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 50





	Panic Plus Real Dads

**Author's Note:**

> Mac having panic attacks is definitely canon. He also has severe abandonment issues and anxiety. You can't tell me otherwise.

There weren't many times that Mac couldn't figure out something to get them out of a situation. Actually, no one could remember a time when Mac's quick thinking hadn't saved their butts. But this time, something was different.

Mac, Jack and James, much to Jack's displeasure, had gone to recover a hard drive holding information on a group of dangerous mercenaries. It was supposed to be one of those quick in, quick out missions, but that always went so well for them.

No one really knew why James MacGyver had decided to come with them, he barely ever did. His presence was grating on Jack's nerves for more than one reason. First, James seemed to be running the whole operation. Anyone who knew Mac and Jack knew that they had a certain way of running ops. Jack was the brawn and Mac was the brain, obviously. They had been working together for so long, that they understood each other's actions with an almost incomprehensible depth. Jack was fluent in what everyone at the agency called "Mac speak". Jack knew it was just a fun way of saying that Jack understood Mac better than anyone, but he took his role seriously. But with James on the op, everything seemed off and disconnected, not to mention the always present tension between Jack and the elder MacGyver.

Secondly, and most importantly to Jack, James' presence was deeply affecting Mac. Whenever the kid was around his father, Jack could physically see the need to prove himself written all over Mac's face. The boy could barely even do his job, not wanting to mess up in front of his father. That's what bothered Jack the most. The man had abandoned his son when he was only ten and then he shows back up in his life fifteen years later, expecting to act like nothing had happened. And the kid went right along with it, even though he had a different father the last six years.

So, when they were sent on the mission, Jack was over the top with fury.

Everything was going great as they pulled up to the warehouse where the hard drive was supposedly being kept. Much to Jack's displeasure, both MacGyvers went off together in search of the hard drive, while he went to scope out the territory.

Now, Jack was so in tune with his boy, that he knew the instant something was wrong with him. This time was no different. Something in the pit of Jack's stomach was giving him a bad feeling about this whole situation. Orders were orders, and his orders were to scout out the building and be ready to shoot any baddies if need be. On the other hand, when had Jack ever listened to orders? What did he care if they were from Oversight himself? Taking one last glance at the room he was clearing, Jack turned and headed back towards the way he came.

0000

Everything was going fine, as usual. For the first minute.

Mac and his dad had located the hard drive without a problem. Well, unless you counted this overwhelming feeling of dread that was bubbling inside of Mac. He knew this feeling, heck, he was used to this feeling, but it didn't make it any easier. He had been diagnosed with panic attacks right after his dad left and he had suffered from them ever since. Having panic attacks was never easy, but having panic attacks and being a secret agent, well, that was a whole other story. Mac didn't always know what triggered the attacks, sometimes it was evident and sometimes it wasn't, but he always knew one thing. Jack always, always, knew how to calm him down.

Right now, Mac was desperately trying to settle his nerves enough so that his brain could function properly. These were some of the few times in Mac's life that his brain just shut down. Sometimes his brain got so clouded in anxiety, that he didn't even register where he was or what he was doing. It usually started like this, and once his heart started pounding in his chest, as it was doing now, there was almost nothing he could do to stop the escalation.

Mac closed his eyes for a moment and tried to take a breath. He didn't succeed in doing anything but tightening his chest even more. His palms began to sweat. He couldn't shut down, not here with no Jack and his dad staring him down. He could almost feel his dad's eyes calculating his every move.

"Angus, what are you doing? This is a time sensitive mission and there is no room for goofing off," his dad said in a cold monotone.

That was all it took to set Mac off. His dad had caught him and was now probably making a list of all of the things he ever screwed up on. He tried so hard to get his father to approve of him and now he definitely thought that he was unqualified to do his job and would probably take him out of the field as soon as they got back.

All of these thoughts swirled around in Mac's head, over and over until he was hopelessly lost in his thoughts. He felt his chest muscles constrict with panic as his breathing sped up. His heart practically hummed in his chest; beads of sweat were blossoming on his forehead and the palms of his hands. All thoughts of the op or anything besides his growing panic drifted into the back of his conscious. He felt his chest heave with the effort of hyperventilating. He couldn't think, couldn't breathe, couldn't even function.

"Angus! Stop this! We need to finish the assignment and get to Exfil before time runs out. You need to stop this and get control of yourself. There is absolutely no reason for this behavior," James MacGyver practically spat at his son. It failed to come to his attention that Mac couldn't calm down, couldn't stop.

As if through a tunnel, Mac heard all of the statements that his dad made. They ripped at his panic-stricken heart as he desperately tried to calm himself even though he knew he couldn't do it on his own. He needed help. He needed Jack.

0000

Jack was coming upon one of the last rooms he had to search. They had to be here because he had checked everywhere else. Just as he suspected, Jack heard voices as he approached the door at the end of the hallway.

"There is absolutely no reason for this behavior."

A new wave of rage crashed over Jack. That was the voice of James MacGyver telling his son, Mac, that his behavior was not appropriate. Mac's behavior not appropriate, what a joke! The kid was a boy scout at heart, even if he was kicked out of scouts. Whatever Mac was doing, there had to be a reason and Jack was ready to rip the man apart limb from limb if he had done anything to Mac.

Without even hesitating, Jack ran through the door and stopped dead in his tracks at the sight unfolding in front of him. Mac was collapsed on the ground, panting heavily, and grasping at his chest. There was a terrified, faraway look in his usually intelligent, baby blue eyes. Jack had been through enough of these, seen his partner like this enough times, that he immediately knew what was going on. Mac was in the middle of a panic attack, and a bad one at that.

Jack's blood started to boil at the sight of James standing off to the side, looking appalled by his son's distress. He decided to ignore the man for now, his concern for his partner overcoming his rage for the boy's father. Turning away, he looked at the younger man. The boy was still desperately hyperventilating, truly panicking now.

Jack felt so mad at himself, so mad at James, because if he had been here, he might have been able to stop his attack before it escalated this far. But, because James had purposely, and Jack knew he had purposely done it, sent Jack away, Mac's mental state was now in danger. Without a second thought, Jack knelt down in front of the young man.

"Hey, brother. Why don't you calm down and tell good ol' Jack what's going on," he murmured. He made sure to keep his hands at his sides. Whenever Mac had one of his attacks, it was vital that you didn't touch him until you got conformation from the young man. Mac was like the skittish colts that Jack had dealt with back on the family ranch. They were terrified and in flight or fight mode. You had to keep your voice soothing and not frighten them at all.

Mac made no acknowledgement towards Jack, which concerned the older man. "Mac? You hearin' me? Come on bud, tell me what's going on in that ginormous brain," Jack murmured gently. This time, Mac's eyes momentarily flicked to Jack. His eyes ripped a hole in Jack's heart. The raw fear and emotion in his eyes nearly killed him, but he reached out towards the boy anyway.

He really shouldn't have done that. Immediately Jack could see Mac's mind kick into survival mode. He didn't seem to register that the hand reaching out to him as Jack's rather than and enemy. His long legs kicked out and his fist flailed in a wild flurry. One of his punches hit Jack in the shoulder, who had refused to move. Jack had promised Mac a long time ago that he would never abandon him, especially during one of his attacks.

"Angus!" James yelled disapprovingly at the same time Jack yelled "Mac!" Jack grabbed both of Mac's wrists in an effort to stop the boy from injuring himself. Mac struggled against Jack, but his struggles were fruitless. "Mac, hey, hey calm down buddy. Listen, it's just me. You're gonna hurt yourself if you don't calm down."

This seemed to break through one of Mac's many layers. He stopped struggling but continued to hyperventilate. Jack took one of the wrists that he held in his hands and placed it on his own chest. "Hey, do you feel that heartbeat? Do you feel how my lungs are movin'? That's what yours need to be like. Try and match your breathing to mine. That's it, in and out just like you've always done," Jack gazed into Mac's scared eyes. He tried to keep his voice smooth and calm, not giving away any of his emotion towards the older man gazing at them from across the room.

Jack smiled reassuringly at Mac as the boy's breathing slowly evened out. "That's it, bud. You've got this. I'm right here man, just breathe." Jack moved his thumb up and down the back of Mac's hand in a soothing gesture. Just as Mac's eyes were beginning to come back to reality, James decided to put in his unneeded two cents.

"What is your problem Angus? You need to stop this right now. We already missed Exfil, so there is no time for anymore of this nonsense," James spat out. This sent Mac reeling all over again. His eyes glazed back over, and his breathing sped up again. "Son of a-" Jack was cut off by Mac once again going into fight or flight mode. He started to fight out of Jack's grip with even more strength than last time, heaving with the effort of the erratic movements.

"Mac!" Jack screamed for the second time that day. The boy was too far distraught to even listen this time. Jack had no choice but to do what was always the last resort because he knew how embarrassing it was for Mac. He sat behind the boy and wrapped his arms around him, effectively pinning the younger man's arms down. He could feel Mac's chest heaving under his arms as he pulled him towards his chest.

"J-Jack," Mac stuttered out between breaths. His hand was desperately twisting in the material of Jack's shirt. "Shhh, I'm right here. Everything's good man. Come on, you just need to calm down so we can get out of here and get some grub. How does pizza and beer sound?" Jack rambled on, doing as he did best when his partner was in distress.

Slowly, Mac calmed down again until Jack was able to release his hold on him. Jack helped him to stand, keeping one hand on his back for support if needed. "You okay to finish up here? We just need to grab the hard drive and leave," Jack asked his partner gently. Mac gave a small nod and they continued on. The rest of the time Jack kept an eye on his partner and his partner's dad.

0000

Hours later, they were all back in LA, safe and sound. Mac and Jack were sitting around the firepit, drinking beers and eating pizza. Mac had been quiet, not the trademark MacGyver thinking quiet, but the upset type of quiet. Scooting over on the bench, Jack put his arm around Mac's slim shoulders.

"So, you feeling okay after today?" Shrug "What do you think triggered the attack this time?" The second question was really redundant. Jack knew what had set the attack off. How could he not, the way Mac started freaking out the minute his dad showed any disappointment in him. Jack was about to comment on this fact, but the face of a man out of the corner of his eye stopped him. "Hang on bud. I'll be back in a sec." With that Jack got up and headed towards James MacGyver.

James stared at Jack with two cold eyes. Jack stopped about four feet away from the man but looked him dead in the eye. Being a hard-core Delta, Jack could make even the deadliest merc quiver in his shoes. There were few people that Jack had never used the stare on, Mac being on the top of the list, but he had no problem with using on the boy's father.

"If you've got something to say to me, Dalton, say it," James deadpanned. Jack contemplated for a moment. There was a lot of things that he wanted to say to him, a lot of things he wanted to do to him, but none of which that would work out well in the end. He couldn't watch Mac's six if he didn't work at the agency or was in prison. So, he had to choose his words carefully.

"Listen, honestly, I don't care if you're my boss, we're off the clock anyway. You left Mac when he was a kid and then you step back into his life expecting him to be your perfect little boy. You don't even understand the way his mind works or the way we run our ops. I've been dealin' with his attacks since we met in the Sandbox and I know how to handle them. Today when you spout your mouth off, that set him off. He wants to prove himself to you so badly that any sign of displeasure form you sends him into a panic. I don't ever want to here you make comments like that towards him again, okay?" Jack growled, taking a threatening step towards the man in front of him.

For a moment, a defensive fire burned in James' eyes, but it went out as if snuffed out by reality. Jack stiffened, waiting for some comment about his insubordination, but he really didn't give a crap. Right now, he was only worried about the wellbeing of his boy.

"Thank you," James finally murmured. Jack felt as if he was rammed into by a tank. Those two quiet words had him so taken aback that he couldn't even think straight. Why was James MacGyver thanking him? Of course, he had practically raised his son since he the kid was nineteen, but he thought that James was too egotistic to ever admit that, let alone thank Jack for it.

"What are you thanking me for?" Jack growled, venom practically dripping from his voice.

"For taking care of Angus and knowing what he needs. Now, if you ever threaten me again Dalton, I will have you filed for insubordination." James pivoted on his heels and strode out of the house without another word. For a moment, Jack stood there before a huge smile broke a cross his face. He turned and went back to sit with his kid. Mac glanced up at him, maybe James was a real lousy father, but Mac had the best one right here beside him.


End file.
